ENV100Y5 Lecture 12: L12 Ch8 - Agriculture and Biotechnology
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ENV100Y5 Full Course Notes
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Challenge of feeding a growing human population. Al(cid:373)ost (cid:1005) (cid:271)illio(cid:374) people do(cid:374)"t get e(cid:374)ough to eat o(cid:374) a (cid:396)egula(cid:396) (cid:271)asis. Approximately 1 billion people are overweight or obese: ~73% of americans are overweight or obese. In canada, 48% of adults exceed their healthy weight and 14% are obese: calorie gap between rich and poor. Diseases of malnutrition: marasmus: severe deficit of energy, protein and carbohydrates, kwashiorkor: protein and micronutrient deficiency, excess fats, carbohydrates, calories, diabetes, heart disease, obesity. Who is most at hunger risk: rural poor in developing countries. Often have no electricity and no safe drinking water. Health, education and sanitation services are poor. Many have no land of their own and work seasonally: urban poor. No means to produce food; have few resources to buy it: victims of catastrophes. Floods, droughts, earthquakes, etc. force people to abandon land. Wh(cid:455) (cid:272)a(cid:374)"t (cid:449)e feed e(cid:448)e(cid:396)(cid:455)o(cid:374)e: farmers today produce more than enough calories to feed everyone.
